Free And Cheap Things To Do This Week In London: 14-20 October 2024

Things to do for a fiver or less.

Budget-friendly things to do in London this week for £5 or less.

Looking for more free things to do in London? Here are 102 of em! We've also compiled this epic map of free stuff in London.

See artworks by survivors of modern slavery

Anti-Slavery Day is on 18 October, and to mark it you can view Hestia's annual art and photography exhibition, Art is Freedom, on display at Trafalgar Square, Waterloo station and Victoria station. The artworks have all been created by survivors of modern slavery.

Free, until 20 October.

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Find out what links Kew Gardens and the aviation industry

Spoiler alert: it's not the Heathrow flight path overhead. But during the first world war, Kew Gardens was key to the growing aviation industry, not least because aircraft were largely constructed from plant-derived materials such as wood and linen rather than metal, and Kew's botanists were the most knowledgeable people about such materials.

Find out about all of this and more in a free lunchtime lecture hosted by the RAF Museum on Tuesday. You can watch in person at the museum, or online.

Free, 15 October.

Get a free coffee at Monument

If you're in the vicinity of Monument this Wednesday (or indeed, the two following Wednesdays) make a point of swinging by Curators Coffee at 9a Cullum Street. The non-profit coffee roastery — which trains young people with special educational needs and disabilities — are slinging free coffees (7am-5pm) to celebrate 15 years in business.

Free, 16 October. (Also 23 and 30 October.)

Grow your knowledge about the world's largest tree

What spans 43 hectares, weighs 6,000 tonnes and self-replicates via a vast root system dating back 9,000 years? That'd be the world's largest tree. It's called Pando, it lives in the Fishlake National Forest in Utah, and you can learn more about it via a free online lecture hosted by the Royal Geographical Society on Thursday.

Free, 17 October.

Visit an exhibition of wildlife art

Mall Galleries hosts The Natural Eye 2024, the annual exhibition by the Society of Wildlife Artists.

View works by artists from across the UK, Europe and North America, including a couple of famous faces. Wildlife presenter and conservationist Chris Packham and comedian and artist Jim Moir (AKA Vic Reeves) both have artworks in the show, alongside 350 other pieces spanning paintings, drawings, sculptures, and prints depicting wildlife from around the globe. Insects, birds, foxes, wild dogs and bears all feature.

£5, 17-27 October.

Browse the free programme at Bloomsbury Festival

Kicking off on Friday, Bloomsbury Festival has a huge programme spanning nine days, and although not all of the events are free, plenty are. This week, they include a story session for under-5s, a VR experience focusing on coral reefs at the Grant Museum, a family art day at October Gallery, and a walking and writing workshop.

Some events free, 18-27 October.

See what's on for free at Streatham Festival

Another local festival taking place this week is Streatham Festival. Again, not all events are free, but it's worth leafing through the programme for those that are. They include a talk about photographing the night sky, a street dance class (everyone welcome!) and a smartphone photography session.

Some events free, until 20 October.

See free concerts as part of this new music festival

Last week, we told you about brand new event The City Festival of Music, Invention & Knowledge, which is a programme of concerts in venues all around the Square Mile and beyond. The free Before They Are Famous series of lunchtime recitals by up-and-coming musicians continues this week. Head to St Dunstan-in-the-West on Monday, St Margaret Pattens on Tuesday, and St James Garlickhythe on Thursday (all at 1.05pm) to hear different performers every time, in some wonderful buildings.

Some events free, until 24 October.

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Take a wander through this year's Frieze Sculpture Park

Frieze London may be over, but its (free!) sculpture park lives on. Head to Regent's Park to hunt out the artworks by 22 artists which make up the free trail this year. It's all a bit avant garde, with plenty to make you squint, cock your neck to one side, giggle, scratch your head and/or stroke your chin like a bona fide art critic. Great for kids too, as they'll love hunting them all out.

Free, until 27 October.

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